TOWN OF POUGHKEEPSIE – A select group of Hudson Valley high school and college students recently completed summer research projects designed to check the status of the local watershed. The Mid-Hudson Young Environmental Scientists (MH-YES) program is coordinated by the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook.
Twelve high school students from Dutchess, Putnam, and Ulster Counties joined with two college students and a high school teacher to carry out field studies and lab experiments to learn about issues affecting the local watershed.
Heritage Middle School Science Teacher Fellow Aileen Toback, who also does research for NASA, was selected as the educator for the program. “This is a program that gives students an opportunity to participate in research and provide an authentic science experience, ” said Toback who has been with the Newburgh Enlarged Central School District for more than two decades.
Marist College provided lab space for the students who were divided into three groups to research a specific topic. The groups gathered on the Vassar College campus on August 26 to present their findings.
Millbrook High School Olivia Lucal, entering her senior year, worked with her group to examine the effects of personal care products such as laundry detergent and hand soap on different soil types. “Our group expected to show that pH levels in soils would increase but our research showed that the products had no effect.” The senior who plans to major in astrophysics in college did note that CO2 levels in the soils did rise when subjected to the soaps.
The second research group studied the use of aquatic vegetation to remove nitrates from the water while the third group studied macro-invertebrates in the Fishkill Creek in Dutchess County.
